1. Field of the Invention
This application relates to dental hygiene, and in particular, relates to devices and methods for exposing teeth to electromagnetic radiation.
2. Description of Related Art
Dental hygiene is important for dental health and for personal appearance. People often desire to have whiter or cleaner teeth. A number of different devices and methods are known in the art for whitening and cleaning teeth. Several methods utilize a whitening agent, such as peroxide, alone or in combination with other agents, to attempt to whiten teeth. In certain processes, the whitening agent is applied to teeth by brushing the teeth with a dentifrice, such as a paste, gel, liquid, cream, or powder, containing the whitening agent. Other methods employ dental trays or dental stints that have received an application of a whitening agent. In such methods, the dental tray is pressed onto the teeth, and the whitening agent is permitted to bathe or coat the teeth (e.g., see U.S. Pat. No. Re. 34,196, entitled METHOD AND MATERIAL FOR BRIGHTENING TEETH). Another method employs a dental tray having a heating element wire disposed within the tray (e.g., see U.S. Pat. No. 6,102,705, entitled HEATED DENTAL TRAY). In that method, a whitening agent is applied to a dental tray having a heating element wire, and the tray is pressed onto the teeth of a person. Current then passes through the wire and heats the teeth. In yet another method, lasers are used to enhance the effects of whitening agents (e.g., see U.S. Pat. No. 6,254,388, entitled METHODS FOR WHITENING TEETH; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,155,832, entitled METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR WHITENING TEETH). In U.S. Pat. No. 6,254,388, argon laser energy is manually directed over a person""s tooth. The soft tissues of the mouth, such as the gums, is protected by rubber dams or adhesive wax. In U.S. Pat. No. 6,155,832, laser light is manually directed and used to activate whitening agents provided on dental tape.
Currently known devices and methods may suffer from the problem that the effectiveness of the whitening agent is not maximized, or that the use of lasers requires manual guidance over each tooth in order to achieve the desired whitening. Accordingly, there remains an unmet need for a device that provides substantial whitening or cleaning of teeth and eliminates the need for manually guiding an energy source over the teeth.
The present invention provides a device and methods for exposing teeth to electromagnetic radiation. The devices and methods improve dental hygiene, and may enhance the cosmetic appearance of teeth.
The dental device of the invention broadly includes a carrier, and at least one electromagnetic radiation source. The carrier may include, but is not limited to, dental trays, dental bands, and/or dental tape. The electromagnetic radiation source may be a light source. The energy emitted from the electromagnetic radiation source may have one or more wavelengths between the ultraviolet light spectrum and the infra-red light spectrum. The radiation may activate hygienic or cleaning agents provided in dentifrices.
The dental device of the invention may also include a power supply to power the electromagnetic radiation source, and/or may include a circuit for controlling the electromagnetic radiation source(s).
A dental device for exposing teeth to electromagnetic radiation may include a carrier to be applied to at least one tooth; and one or more light sources attached to the carrier and oriented so electromagnetic radiation is emitted from the light source or sources toward a tooth surface.
The carrier of the foregoing device may be a dental tray, a dental band, or dental tape. The light source may be a light emitting diode, an optical fiber, or an electrochemiluminescent material. The optical fibers may be provided as an optical fiber panel.
A dental device for exposing teeth to electromagnetic radiation may also comprise a dental tray structured to fit over the teeth of a subject; and a plurality of optical fibers to provide electromagnetic radiation to at least one tooth. The optical fibers can be disposed on the dental tray so that the electromagnetic radiation is directed to at least one tooth. The optical fibers may define an optical fiber panel.
The foregoing devices may also include a power source in communication with the light source. The power source would provide power to the light source so that the light may be emitted from the light source. The foregoing devices may also include one or more circuits for controlling the electromagnetic radiation emitted from the light source. In addition, the foregoing devices may include one or more panels, including a reflective panel, a diffuser panel, and/or one or more transparent panels. The panels may contribute to the structure of the light source arrays, and may enhance or improve the effects of the electromagnetic radiation. The reflective panel may be positioned between the light source and the carrier. The diffuser panel may be positioned over the light source so that light emitted from the light source passes through the diffuser. The transparent panel may be provided over the light source, and/or may be provided between the light source and the carrier. The foregoing devices may also include an optical fiber bundle operably connected with the light source so that optical energy may be transmitted from the optical fiber bundle to the light source.
A method for exposing teeth to electromagnetic radiation comprises the steps of: (a) providing a dental device, which comprises a carrier and a plurality of optical fibers disposed on or in the carrier; (b) applying a dentifrice containing an agent having cleaning properties, the cleaning activity of the agent activated by electromagnetic radiation provided by the optical fibers to the dental device; (c) applying the dental device to a subject""s teeth; and (d) activating a power source so that electromagnetic radiation is emitted from the optical fibers toward the dentifrice and the subject""s teeth. The carrier used in the foregoing may be a dental tray.
Any feature or combination of features described herein are included within the scope of the present invention provided that the features included in any such combination are not mutually inconsistent as will be apparent from the context, this specification, and the knowledge of one of ordinary skill in the art.
Additional advantages and aspects of the present invention are apparent in the following detailed description and claims.